Xpressbees, a leading Indian logistics company, has secured $80 million in funding in a recent round led by Ontario Teachers’ late-stage venture growth fund. The investment comes as online shopping continues to thrive in the country.
Key Takeaway
Xpressbees, an Indian logistics firm, has secured $80 million in new funding, with Ontario Teachers’ leading the round. The investment highlights the strong potential of the Indian e-commerce market and positions Xpressbees for an impending IPO within the next two years.
Ontario Teachers’ Backs Xpressbees
The Canadian pension fund has acquired a stake in Xpressbees, headquartered in Pune, at a valuation of $1.4 billion. This is the same valuation that the startup raised during its previous Series F tranche. With this latest injection of capital, Xpressbees has now received cumulative funding of around $680 million. The specific details of this round and the extent of any secondary transactions have not been disclosed.
Strong Backing from Major Players
Xpressbees boasts an impressive list of backers, including Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah, TPG, Alibaba, and Blackstone. The company works with over 1,000 clients, including industry giants like Paytm, Meesho, Lenskart, Xiaomi, and NetMeds, delivering their products to customers all over India. With a presence in more than 2,000 cities and towns, Xpressbees processes over 2.5 million orders daily. Although it operated at a loss, the startup generated a revenue of approximately $300 million in the previous financial year.
Preparing for an Initial Public Offering
The entrance of the Canadian pension fund signals that Xpressbees may be gearing up for an initial public offering (IPO) in the next year or two. The company began as part of the e-commerce platform FirstCry in 2012, but became an independent entity in 2015. Amitava Saha, the co-founder and chief operating officer of FirstCry, assumed the role of chief executive at Xpressbees, while Supam Maheshwari, the co-founder and current CEO of FirstCry, also co-founded Xpressbees.
Ontario Teachers’ has shown significant interest in the Indian market, having invested over $3 billion in the country. This investment in Xpressbees further solidifies India as one of the pension fund’s “key strategic” countries.
While Xpressbees faces competition from established logistics firms like Delhivery and fast-growing startups such as Shadowfax, the company’s scalable and efficient asset-light model, coupled with its proven execution capabilities, make it well-positioned to capitalize on the booming Indian e-commerce sector.
